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Charter reviewers split over bylaw language aimed at protecting public commenters
Summary
The Charter Review Commission’s bylaws committee proposed language asking commissioners to refrain from identifying public commenters; the committee circulated the language to the county prosecutor, public testimony was heavy and the full commission deadlocked on whether to adopt the wording now or send it back for revision.
The Charter Review Commission spent several hours debating a proposed bylaw that would ask commissioners to refrain from identifying members of the public who speak at meetings.
The proposal originated in the bylaws committee after public testimony that some speakers felt targeted online after speaking at a CRC meeting. Commissioner Susan Fish, chair of the bylaws committee, said the draft had been sent to the county prosecutor for review and that the committee voted to “encourage the public to provide public comments” and to “refrain from identifying public commenters” in public statements.
The draft committee language followed legal advice from the prosecutor’s office stating that wording framed as a mandate (for example, “shall” or “should”) could raise First…
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